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CNN Saturday Morning News
Cease-Fire Being Ignored in Libya; Radiation Levels Up in Food; Crews Drilling Holes in Reactors to Release Pressure; Japan Dealing With Daily Quakes, Food Shortages, Lack of Shelter; Another 5.9 Quake Strikes Japan; CNN Reporter Sandra Endo Searches For Family Amid Japanese Disaster; Some Japanese Turning to Buddhism and Shinto Religions for Comfort
Aired March 19, 2011 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.
We are tracking two breaking news stories right now.
In Libya, a fighter jet has been shot down and widespread shelling happening as we speak. This is all happening near the rebel stronghold of Benghazi. And all of this happening as Moammar Gadhafi claims that a cease-fire is, in fact, in place. This is the latest sign that the situation in Libya is still a very serious one and military intervention from the U.S. and other countries could be triggered soon.
Meanwhile, the president -- he has promised American help enforcing a no-fly zone to Libyan civilians. He did that shortly before heading out for a tour of Brazil. Also, he has been tracking -- the president has been tracking the nuclear crisis in Japan. We are tracking it as well.
Crews there have now resorted to drilling holes into several of the reactors to try to release pressure. Now, abnormal radiation levels have been detected in food near the plant.
Hello to you. From the CNN Center, this is your CNN SATURDAY MORNING for this March 19th. Good to be back with you. I'm T.J. Holmes.
And we are going to start this hour in Libya, where United Nations call for a cease-fire not even close to being reserved right now -- observed right now, I should say. There have been massive explosions in the eastern city of Benghazi. Moammar Gadhafi's forces are firing on that city.
We have a CNN crew on the ground there, also saw a fighter plane being shot down and it went down in flames.
Benghazi, you have been hearing that name a lot over the past several weeks of the rest there. It's been the heart of the opposition movement.
Earlier, our Arwa Damon, who is there in Benghazi told us about the offensive being launched now by government forces. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): It would seem as if Gadhafi's forces have definitely begun their air assault on the opposition stronghold over Benghazi, an assault that witnesses tell us began at the early morning hours of the morning here. They say that the fighting in the outskirts were fairly fierce.
At around 8:45, we saw a plane overhead appearing to be heading south. And around 9:10, one of our team witnessed a jet, a fighter jet, fall out of the sky in flames. We have since then spoken to an opposition fighter who told us that was one of their own aircraft that they were sending out to try to stop, bring a stop to Gadhafi's military assault on this very, very critical city. This is the heart of the opposition.
Since then, we have heard and seen artillery rounds. We also had a number of our team see Gadhafi's tanks moving into the southern part of the city, witnessing them firing inside the city as well. We have seen an attack helicopter flying low overhead. That we believe belongs to the opposition.
We have also seen a vessel around five kilometers off the coast moving north. We do not know if that is a Gadhafi vessel or one that the opposition has at their disposal.
This is very, very critical development here. This is the opposition's stronghold. This is a city they have vowed to protect. Especially disturbing for the opposition is the fact this is taking place right now in clear violations of that United Nations resolution that they have been waiting for -- a resolution that was meant to put into place a no-fly zone that states a cease-fire needs to occur immediately -- a resolution that is intended to protect the civilian population.
And now, the civilian population of Benghazi is under attack and we have yet to see any sort of foreign intervention.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Again, our Arwa Damon reporting for us from Benghazi. The fighting, of course, is intensifying there and parts of Libya.
Top diplomats, meanwhile, will meet today in Paris. Once they decide what to do about this situation -- more importantly, how to enforce the U.N. resolution that's calling for a cease-fire and no-fly zone over Libya. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is there.
President Obama indicated yesterday that the U.S. will support operations but not necessarily interested in taking an offensive, a lead role, if you will, with American warplanes and also said would not have troops on the ground. The meetings in Paris are scheduled to start in about two hours.
I want to turn now to Yemen. Clashes are happening there in the capital. That had left dozens of people dead. This started with fighting between anti-government protesters and government supporters.
Witnesses say security forces tried to intervene here by firing into the crowd. Forty people at least killed, more than 100 injured. Yemen's president declared a state of emergency there. Anti- government demonstrators are calling on the president to step down.
Well, unrest also spreading through Syria. The United States is urging the Syrian government to listen to the demonstrators.
(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)
HOLMES: Seeing anti-government protesters there taking to the streets in the capital of Damascus. There have been claims of death and injuries from clashes between protesters and security forces. But that hasn't been independently confirmed, we caution. United Nations calls any government crackdown, quote, "unacceptable."
Also, just minutes ago, another strong aftershock -- another strong aftershock felt by CNN's crew in Tokyo. Also, some new images we're getting into the CNN newsroom from Japan.
Let's show you some video we are getting today of workers pumping water -- this is a good sign here -- pumping water into the number three reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.
Now, today, it could be a critical, critical one in the attempts to prevent a full nuclear meltdown at that damaged plant.
The latest: workers hope to start powering the cooling systems for four reactors there by the end of today. A government official says the water levels in three of those reactors have stabilized somewhat, but he adds the situation is still unpredictable. Workers hope to restore power for the other two reactors.
Meanwhile, the Japanese government official says abnormally high levels of radiation have been detected now in spinach and milk from the northeast region. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says the amount is what a person in an industrialized country is typically exposed to in a full year.
All this comes as the human toll rises -- 7,320 is the official death toll now. More than 11,000 still listed as missing, 2,600 injured. The country's defense minister says 106,000 defense forces are at work, making this the biggest operation ever by Japan's self- defense forces. They've rescued more than 19,000 people.
We want to get more on the radiation threat there. And also, this latest shaking that our crew felt.
CNN's Anna Coren in Tokyo for us.
Anna, if I can, I want to get to the radiation found in the spinach and milk, certainly, a concern there. But another aftershock you just felt. How big of an aftershock was this one?
ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: T.J., it was actually an earthquake. That is what we are hearing, not an aftershock. It was measuring 6.1 and some 20 kilometers deep south of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. And from what we understand, no reports of any damage to the plant. So, that is good news.
But, certainly, where we are in Tokyo, the building was shaking. We are on the ninth floor and we also stood up and looked towards the ceiling and kept the doors open because it is a very eerie feeling.
But, I guess, moving on to what you were talking about, which is this high levels or higher levels, I should say, of radiation detected in both milk and spinach. The government came out today saying that they were higher than Japan's food and safety law and they are certainly looking into it.
We know that the milk, the source of it was some 30 kilometers from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. But before people become alarmed by this news, you should mention that you'd have to drink a year's worth of milk for it to be the equivalent of having a CT scan. So, perhaps that puts it into perspective.
The government has launched a thorough investigation and says it wants to know the source and also whether they need to ban other foods in this area -- T.J.
HOLMES: OK. Anna, very good for the perspective you just gave us there -- how much you have to actually take in.
But, still, is it raising some concerns? People just hear radiation and food -- and I assume it's going to raise some fears and some concerns there.
COREN: Yes, it certainly does, T.J. I mean, I think this entire issue of radiation and a nuclear fallout, you know, it certainly does create alarm and panic. And that is why we have been seeing those scenes of people leaving Tokyo and most of them being foreigners.
You know, we caught up with the number of people who lived in that Fukushima area and they just decided to get out. They don't want to be in the exclusion zone because they are concerned for their health, their safety and particularly that of their children. So, people aren't taking risks. And, of course, when it's associated with food, people do get very concerned.
And from what the government has told us, this isn't going to impact your health. They have launched a thorough investigation and will certainly alert the public when they know more.
HOLMES: All right. Anna Coren for us in Tokyo -- we appreciate the update. Thank you so much. We'll continue to check in and continue to follow up on the story throughout the morning here.
Meanwhile, a New Hampshire man who was teaching in Japan -- well, he is back home, but his heart, his concerns are still back in Japan, if you will. Jacob Pouliot, he was met by his parents at the Boston airport yesterday. He was teaching English at a private school in Sendai when the quake struck 80 miles. Listen to his concern now about what's happening back in Japan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JACOB POULIOT, JAPAN QUAKE/TSUNAMI SURVIVOR: I have to imagine that some of them might not have made it through because they come from the towns that were just wiped out. When I saw the news, Soma and Minami Soma were just completely gone.
It's become like a home to me. And I hope (INAUDIBLE).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You hope to go back you say?
POULIOT: Yes, I do. I don't know.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: "Some of them" you heard him refer to there, of course, talking about the students that he taught there. Pouliot says it was just a nightmare trying to make his way from Sendai to Tokyo to catch a flight back to the United States.
Meanwhile, President Obama expected to land in Brazil in somewhere in the 20 minutes or so -- the first stop on a three-nation Latin America tour. After Brazil, there are stops planned in Chile and El Salvador. Trade and economic issues expected to dominate the discussion. We'll have more on the trip, including a live report from our Ed Henry who is traveling with the president. That's coming up after the president lands, again, in about 20 minutes from now.
Also, former secretary of state, Warren Christopher, has died. He served during President Bill Clinton's first term in office. Also served as deputy at the State Department during the Carter administration where he's credited with securing the release of those 52 Americans who were held hostage in Iran. According to his family, he was battling kidney and bladder cancer. Warren Christopher, dead at the age of 85.
Well, after seven years in exile in South Africa, he's back. Haiti's first democratically-elected Jean-Bertrand Aristide returned to the island nation yesterday. U.S. officials are not exactly happy to see him back. They were worried about the timing of his arrival which comes just before Sunday's presidential runoff.
Aristide says he has no political aspiration, says he only wants to help his earthquake-ravaged nation recover.
Also, to Wisconsin now where temporary restraining order has the new budget repair law on hold. The governor says he's confident that the initiative which cuts collective bargaining rights for most state employees will prevail in court. A lawsuit followed by a Democratic district attorney says Republican lawmakers violated the state's open meetings law last week when they passed that bill.
Well, you are in for a treat tonight. You'll see the moon. Big deal, right? You can see the moon every night. But for some reason, Reynolds Wolf is telling me the moon is going to be a big deal.
Reynolds, I can see the moon any night. What's the big deal?
REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: You can see through the clouds.
HOLMES: Yes.
WOLF: You can see through rain. You can see through the roof in your house. You've got to be kidding me. He's got X-ray vision, ladies and gentlemen. And when he sees the moon, it's going to be special. Tonight is going to be special for all of us. It's going to make high tides higher, low tides lower, and to get more information, we're going to have it for your coming up in a few moments.
Super moon!
HOLMES: Super moon.
WOLF: Super moon! Unbelievable!
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: About 14 minutes past the hour on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. I haven't had the chance to say that in a long time.
Reynolds, good to see you again, buddy.
WOLF: Dude, it is so great to see you. I know exactly how the family golden retriever feels when the owners come home. I mean, it's the same joy, but I didn't leave anything -- you know, I didn't chew anything up or leave anything on the carpet.
HOLMES: The place still looks pretty good. It's good to be back. Really, good to be back. It's been since December I haven't had the chance to be here with you. But back on the saddle here.
WOLF: Glad you are back in the saddle.
We got some crazy weather to talk about. Let's show you what's happening out towards. It's going to get insane. What we're looking is some heavy rainfall now in parts of Central Valley. That's not the biggest part of the story. We got some snow that's going to form in the Sierra Nevada. That's also not the second big story.
The big story is going to be from the strong winds we can expect across much of the West Coast and into the Great Basin. When we're talking about strong winds, we're saying into the tune of 35 to 45 miles per hour. Some places getting gusts up to 65 miles an hour into the afternoon.
So, anyone traveling out toward the West, I'm talking San Francisco, perhaps even over towards Denver, even Reno, you might be on the tarmac a little bit longer. Now, in terms of these delays, maybe up to 30 minutes, maybe an hour at times, just be prepared for those backups.
Scattered showers can expected for parts of the Central Plains. A mixture of cool and dry conditions for portions of the mid-Atlantic and back up into the Northeast, warm for you in parts of the Southeast, and of course, the rain and snow mix out toward the west, coupled with the wind.
Now, in terms of your temperatures, 49 degrees for our friends in Billings. For our friends waking up to Los Angeles, it's very early for you, 59 degrees, 49 in Minneapolis, 80 degrees in Dallas, and 78 degrees in Tampa, Florida, 55 at our nation's capital.
T.J., you're up-to-speed. Let's pitch it back to you.
HOLMES: Well, I'm up-to-speed here, Reynolds.
But you have to explain this to me that the moon isn't going to grow tonight. Well, for some reason, I'm told this is a super-sized moon that's going to be bigger than we have seen in a long time. Explain that to me.
WOLF: Well, when you say -- when you say super-sized, I mean, it sounds like something you pick up at McDonalds. What this basically is, you know, the moon has got a very lopsided elliptical orbit. Now, we have a Super moon, something of equivalent to this, happens about once a year.
The situation here is that it's a super full moon. And what it's going to do it's going to enhance (INAUDIBLE). And high tides are going to be higher, low tides are going to be a bit lower. The problem that we're going to run into is how this may affect parts of northeast Japan.
What we're talking about -- and you have to remember, parts of Japan's coast, some places actually sunk anywhere from four to six to eight feet. So, when this tide comes in, there's a very real probability of some additional flooding along the coastline. We are talking places that weren't affected by some of the heaviest damage of the tsunami, some places that have never dealt with any kind of flooding might be dealing with it with this issue.
HOLMES: OK. It will have an effect today. But, you know, there are some people out there who -- I don't want to call them conspiracy theories. But, you know, some idea that, well, maybe this has -- it triggered in some way the earthquake or the tsunami. That -- please put that to rest.
WOLF: I do think that is pure bunk. I mean, people have been speculating when it comes to the moon for a long time. People have said that it can affect cycles of birth, it can affect your mental health, everything. But in terms of affecting the earthquake, I just don't see that.
HOLMES: Thank you for that, Reynolds.
WOLF: You bet. HOLMES: We appreciate you.
We'll check in with Reynolds plenty throughout the morning.
And speaking of Japan -- of course, it's the world's third largest economy and the disasters have caused jitters in the world market. Coming up, we're taking a look at Wall Street's wild ride. Also, the economic ahead.
It's 17 minutes past the hour on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well, 19 minutes past the hour on this Saturday morning.
Investors are keeping a pretty nervous eye on the crisis in Japan. Disruptions in the Japanese economy could, of course, have a global impact. We got the details for you now and the business week ahead from our Poppy Harlow. But we kick it off with our Alison Kosik.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, T.J.
Traders here on Wall Street follow developments out of Japan and the Mideast closely this past week. And it was clear in the numbers. The Dow posted triple digit moves almost every day and stocks were ends lower for the week.
The volatility picked up Wednesday when the blue chips dropped almost 200 points to the matter of minutes because of comments from E.U. energy commissioner about Japan's damaged nuclear power plants.
Another good gauge of volatility on Wall Street is what we call the fear index, the VIX. And it surged this week as well.
Poppy Harlow has a look at what's ahead in business news.
POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Thanks a lot, Alison.
Well, the week ahead brings several important economic reports, including sales numbers on both new and existing homes and a final reading on gross domestic product. Last month, the GDP report was actually revised down because of a big cutback in local and state government spending and the housing market, of course, continues to be a big drag on economic growth. We'll see how it all plays out.
But all of that could sort of play second fiddle to the headlines coming out of Japan and still out of the Middle East. Investors remain on edge about new developments that could affect global economies. We'll follow it all for you all day on CNN Money.
T.J., back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE) HOLMES: All right. Thanks to our Poppy and Alison.
Well, take a look at a couple of pictures, new pictures we're getting out of Japan. Now, the left one shows you Tokyo's skyline before the quake. The right was taken yesterday. Why? Tokyo in the dark.
We'll tell you next at 21 minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: We are at 24 minutes past the hour on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
Some fast-moving developments to tell you about coming out of Libya. We started with at the top of the hour here telling you about an offensive. Our reporter on the ground there, Arwa Damon, is seeing an offensive by the government there to try to possibly take back Benghazi. That has been the capital, if you will, of the rebel movement, of the opposition movement.
Well, the movement is underway to possibly take that back away from the government. This comes at a time when a cease-fire was supposed to be in place.
Our Nic Robertson -- our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson is in Tripoli for us.
Nic, I know you just attended a press conference where it seems that the Gadhafi government has really ratcheted up the rhetoric.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: They certainly have. And the rhetoric may feel confusing as well. We were told the two letters that Moammar Gadhafi has sent, one to President Obama and the other one to the British prime minister, France's president and the U.N. secretary general.
To President Obama, he said, you are my son, whatever happens between our two countries, I will still love you. He said that "I'm prepared to die for my country," and then outline what we've heard from him before, saying that this is a fight. The Libyan government is fighting al Qaeda in North Africa and this is the nature of the fight.
Indeed, he said to President Obama, he said, "If you were fighting armed uprising in your cities, what would you do? Tell me," he said in this letter, "and I will do what you say."
Yet, in the second letter seems to be not only a complete variance with the first one, but in a complete variance with what we've heard from government ministers as recently as yesterday. We've been told that the -- by the foreign minister here that the government here abides by the U.N. resolution will hold a cease-fire and will respect the rights of civilians. Now, this latest letter from Moammar Gadhafi to the U.N. secretary general says that the U.N. resolution is completely invalid. HOLMES: Nic, what are they saying, if anything about what's happening in Benghazi right now where our reporter, Arwa Damon, on the ground there saying, in fact, that this is an offensive by the Gadhafi forces but the Gadhafi forces are saying that they are defending themselves from attacks from the opposition?
ROBERTSON: The government here has maintained that it doesn't have any military action going on, that it's not using its aircraft. That it is observing a cease-fire.
Of course, these statements are wildly contradictory: (a), with the facts on the ground and, (b), with the letter that we just heard that says the U.N. resolution is invalid, that the U.N. isn't in a position to intervene in a foreign -- in a sovereign nation, saying that also that Europe and the U.N. would regret any military action here. The spokesman didn't specify what that -- how Europe and the U.N. would regret this action, but clearly issuing some kind of veiled threat to the international community.
So, all these statements are at a variance. But when you -- when you ask officials here, they will tell you that the journalists are being lied to or the journalists are lying or the information that we are getting is completely wrong and they continue to maintain and say boldfaced, if you will, that they are maintaining a cease-fire which really doesn't square with the facts on the ground, T.J.
HOLMES: All right. And I know you were there at the press conference. You're reporting back to us now. We want our viewers, though, to listen to a bit of it for themselves. Let's take a quick listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MUSA IBRAHIM, LIBYAN GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN: Libya is not yours. Libya is for all Libyans. The resolutions of the Security Council are invalid because the Security Council is not authorized according to the U.N. charter to intervene in the internal affairs of any country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: All right. They are listening to it a bit ourselves. And just to wrap it up here with you on one other note, was there any mention, any talk or any other reporting you are getting? The pictures we saw of that fighter jet that went down in flames in Benghazi. Is there any reporting you can tell us about exactly what happened there? We understand that it did belong to the opposition, according to our Arwa Damon. But are you hearing anything else about this?
ROBERTSON: We're not, T.J. I mean, foreign ministers and others and defense chiefs meetings in Paris right now. This will highlight the problems on the ground. Did the opposition shot down their own aircraft? Was it shot down by Gadhafi's forces?
And certainly, it highlights that fact that forces on the ground are able to bring down aircraft. And that would be a reminder for all nations considering enforcing the no-fly zone, the dangers that exist here in putting up fighter aircraft over such a volatile field, T.J.
HOLMES: Yes, Nic, that is a great and critical point to make about what we're seeing this morning. Nic Robertson reporting for us from Tripoli -- thank you so much.
We are going to turn back here in the moment to the disaster in Japan. It's still unfolding there. We are going to hear firsthand account from a man inside when Fukushima plant when the quake and tsunami struck.
We're at the bottom of the hour on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: It's 32 minutes past the hour on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. I'm T.J. Holmes. Good to be back with you.
Some of the stories making headlines right now. The president should be landing in Brazil any moment now. This is him as he was actually leaving for this trip. Brazil the first stop on the president's Latin America tour, also going to stop in Chile, in El Salvador. We will have a live report on the president's agenda for this trip, what he's hoping to accomplish. A little later in the show our Ed Henry is traveling with the president.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in Paris today for very meetings on the situation in Libya. Leaders trying to decide how to enforce the United Nations' resolution calling for a Libyan cease-fire and a no-fly zone. So far, both not being observed by Libya. The U.N. Member Nations have to decide who are going to commit planes to patrol the skies over Libya.
Also here at home, oil prices slipped on Friday following the cease-fire declared by the Libyan government. Again, it is not being recognized but it was declared. Crude oil futures ended yesterday down some 35 cents, making oil just over $101 a barrel. The cease- fire eased some concerns about disrupted supply from the region.
New York's attorney general wants the feds to conduct a seismic study before reissuing license for the Indian Point nuclear power plant. The facility is some 30 miles north of New York City. It was built near a fault line. The plant is up for relicensing in two years from now. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission rejected a similar request from the state in 2007.
Turning to Japan once again, and a couple of photos we are going to show you. Show you the impact of the Japan's ongoing power crisis at that nuclear plant. Take a look at Tokyo at night. This is before the quake and tsunami struck on March 11th. The Tokyo Electric Power Company began rolling out power short outages, though, on Monday. Look at this other picture, Tokyo after dark, after the rolling outage. Not quite as bright, as you can see. The side-by-side comparison really drives it home. Our Carl Van Wijk is a CNN iReporter. He is in Tokyo for us. Joins us now on the line.
We appreciate you being here. Is this just becoming part-- I know people in Tokyo were shaken up a bit, but still don't have it as bad as a lot of people who are certainly losing their lives, lost their homes in other regions. Are people just dealing, quite frankly, with the outages right now?
CARL VAN WIJK, CNN IREPORTER Absolutely. We are all lucky to be up north. The power outages are just part of everyday life here now. The trains don't run so often. Buildings are shutting down early, say, just before dusk so people can get home before dark. That is just normal here now.
HOLMES: Carl, we have a report from a reporter there a short time ago of another earthquake that struck. Did you feel this one? It was about a 6.0 magnitude, but did you feel this latest one?
VAN WIJK: Yes. Yes. It was about 20 minutes ago. These are coming every day now. This one was the strongest in the last few days. We are getting used to it now.
HOLMES: Japan, no stranger to earthquakes. How long have you been in Tokyo and also when you feel the shaking now, is there a different sense of angst, if you will, with you and maybe some of the citizens given what we just saw happen about a week ago?
VAN WIJK: Yes. I have been here nearly eight years. The difference between today and the 11th is the 11th started off normal and just got bigger and bigger and bigger, side-by-side, shaking side to side, then started to go up and down. That's the difference, the building actually shaking up and down. It was very unusual.
HOLMES: After all this now, ever cross your mind that maybe all that shaking is too much for you and you might want to leave Japan at some point?
VAN WIJK: Actually I'm originally from New Zealand and it is no safer there, also, as you know. They had a quake a few months back.
HOLMES: That is a very good point you make. From New Zealand to Japan, shaking happening in both places.
VAN WIJK: Yes.
HOLMES: Let me just have your reaction. And I want to make sure I have this in perspective for viewers. We hear about there is some contamination found, some radiation found, in some supplies of spinach and milk in the northern region near where the nuclear plant and the crisis is happening there. Again, the levels, you have to take in so much of this food and milk before you would actually be affected. For perspective, our viewers need to know that. Still, for somebody living there, how did you react to that news?
VAN WIJK: I guess, when you buy milk, it's very hard to come by in Tokyo. I got some a couple of days ago, I had to get up at 4:00 o'clock in the morning because I knew that is when the delivery would be. There was only two left on the shelf even at that time of the day. So, I took one, and left one for someone else. But on the pack is says where the milk is from. We steer away if there is any that escaped out into the market. Just make sure it's from the south rather than the north.
HOLMES: Carl Van Wijk, one of our iReporters. We appreciate some of the pictures you are sending in. We appreciate, as well, you taking the time with us on the line. You take care.
VAN WIJK: Thank you very much.
HOLMES: Some low levels of radiation from Japan's crippled nuclear power plant were detected in California yesterday afternoon. As this disaster continues now, where is the radiation going to go next? Who is possibly at risk? We are 37 minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: About 20 minutes to the top of the hour on CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Reynolds Wolf here with me. We have been watching this disaster in Japan unfold on a couple of fronts. You have got-first you've got the earthquake, one of the biggest in the history of world. That is a big enough disaster.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Which by itself is unbelievable.
HOLMES: You have the tsunami that followed.
QUEST: That's strike two.
HOLMES: Then you have this nuclear crises taking place.
WOLF: Strike three.
HOLMES: All right. Now that all this is happening, there's some pretty nasty weather conditions over there. It's been freezing.
WOLF: It's is the cold time of the year. You have to remember, there are a lot of people, when you have an earthquake, there are a lot of, there is obviously damage to buildings. The safest place to be to risk any entrapment is to go outside. People are forced to deal with the elements and it can be kind of rough.
You know, speaking of rough. We did have that earthquake you were talking about, the 5.9 earthquake.
HOLMES: OK?
WOLF: OK, we've got that on the map. We are going to show the viewers exactly where it's taking place. Fukushima up here in this area, farther to the south about 77 miles, here it is, a 5.9 earthquake. Again, if you look at the other dots on the map, we have the yellow and orange spots, they are the tremors. Those are some of the aftershocks. Those are the are additional earthquakes. This is an area that has a long history of earthquakes. No surprise. This is not going to be the last earthquake that we have today. I'm sure we may have several more and let's certainly hope they are going to be considerably weaker and not cause additional damage. One thing that is damaging is the timing of the weather. This is going to be the cool time of the year. It has been over the last couple of weeks. Today is no exception. Not only are we going to have that, the breeze at times is going to pick up. We had a predominant flow, everything moving offshore. Now, we are expecting that wind to have a bit more of a northerly component. It's going is going to shift around a bit. The big fear that a lot of people have is that in terms of the radiation, some of it possibly leaving the plants and actually making it over a populated area, perhaps over towards Tokyo. That does not look like it is going to be a big deal for today. Plus, at this time, the radiation intersperses with the atmosphere as it mixes with the air loft, we are hoping it's going to help diffuse the situation considerably.
But I can tell you that today, in terms of temperatures, it will be a bit on the cool side. Take a look at this, the highs, these are high temperatures at the top. You see the Fahrenheit degrees all the way from Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday in the 40s. Night-time lows, look at this, just a little bit above freezing for later on Sunday. Then into Monday right at or below the freezing point for the rest of the time. It's certainly a cold time for Sendai; basically the same situation in parts of Tokyo.
All right, T.J., that is the latest. Let's send it back to you.
HOLMES: We appreciate that Reynolds getting on that showing us where the latest quake hit. You said a 5.9 magnitude?
WOLF: 5.9.
HOLMES: I don't know if you have seen this yet, Reynolds. We have seen a lot of pictures coming out, of Japan. The tsunami that came afterwards, there is another piece of video. We are going to show you more of this. Take a look at that. Someone trying to drive down the road and here comes the water.
It's 42 minutes past the hour.
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HOLMES: A quarter to the top of the hour, here on this CNN SATURDAY MORING>
It's a week now after that magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami rocked Japan. We are seeing some more incredible images. Take a look at this one. This was taken as a man was driving along a coastal highway. Look what happens. Tsunami bursts over a seawall, slams into his car. The man said at this point all he could do, or at least try to do was keep driving. You can see the water at one point actually picks his car up and starts floating for a bit.
The man says at that point, he panicked. Look at that! You can tell his car is just floating in that water. All he could do is wait for the water to go down a bit and he was able to get to safety.
Of course, there are thousands of people still missing in the wake of that earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Family members flung far and wide, have to wonder were their relatives lucky enough to evacuate? It's hard to get word right now. People wondering all over the world right now about their relatives back there. Were they able to escape that tsunami? Our Sandra Endo is one of those many who has family in that disaster zone. She is here with us from Washington.
Sandra, good morning to you. And have you been able to get in touch with your family members?
SANDRA ENDO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
Yes, my family has. We are one of the lucky ones. I want to say our hearts really go out to all those victims, the thousands who have suffered, who have lost lives and are still waiting to hear from their own family members. You never expect to talk about your own family when covering a major disaster like this.
But in fact, Fukushima, T.J., is my father's hometown. He right now lives in Los Angeles. But I have my 90-year-old grandmother in Fukushima City, as well as many cousins, aunties and four toddlers among them all, all under the age of five. So as you can imagine there are a lot of tense moments as we try to get connected to them.
There, you can see me talking to my father over Skype. We were able to finally get communication with our family members in Fukushima on Tuesday. We did cling on to one little text message we got Friday from a cousin in Hiroshima, which is further, down south of Tokyo, who said that everyone was accounted for. But, T.J., we didn't know what that meant. We didn't know if they were homeless. We didn't know if they were in a shelter. We didn't know if they were injured, or what.
Finally being able to hear their voices on Tuesday really put everything into perspective. Obviously, the conditions are very, very drastic and dire for them. We are talking about a food shortage, gas shortage. The water just turned back on. Electricity just turned back on. They were suffering for days without that as well as thousands of other families in their position.
HOLMES: Sandra, you say they are in Fukushima. Everyone knows that right now, because that's where the nuclear disaster is taking place. How close are they? How are they dealing now with the possibility of the fall out. There's a radius put around at least that plant where the government is telling people to stay away. How are they dealing or coping with living right where this other crisis is taking place?
ENDO: Yes, T.J., you can imagine the joy we felt when we first heard from our family saying they were OK, but then all the news about the radiation and the nuclear power plant. This is the disconcerting thing. The Japanese government put a 12-mile radius as the evacuation zone around the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Well, America and other foreign countries put the evacuation zone at 50 miles around there, saying their citizens should get out of the zone. My family lives within that zone, that 50-mile radius.
So it is disconcerting to hear the news that Americans and other foreign nationals should leave, however, Japanese officials are saying that my family, as well as thousands of others in that city, are OK to stay. So, which one should we be listening to here? Who is really in danger? They are really living on the cusp and kind of in limbo.
The one unnerving fact that they told me just recently when I spoke to them is that they are not getting information, T.J., about what to do with this radiation. They say there's one is one little young man who set up a radiation detection machine at a local high school. His job is to test radiation, but he doesn't really know what to do. And what to do with those numbers when they do show up, on this device, really. So, he just says to them, oh, just wash it off, you'll be OK. So really unnerving.
HOLMES: Well, disaster on top of disaster. I know, Sandra, none of us expect to be talking about our families during a disaster. We don't want to, but your story is one that a lot of people in the country are going through, trying to get a hold of their family members there. So we appreciate you sharing. Sandra, good see you this morning.
ENDO: Thanks, T.J.
HOLMES: Certainly, you can imagine, some people might seem like the world is collapsing around them. Spirits not, though, in the face of now three massive disasters we are seeing signs of resilience.
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HOLMES: About nine minutes to the top of the hour. Staying calm in the face of the disaster. Japan dealing with the earthquake, tsunami, nuclear crisis, people there are hungry, they are desperate, they are out of their homes, they are frightened-yet, somehow, from what we have been seeing, they haven't been broken.
Nadia Bilchik joining me this morning. Good to see you once again.
NADIA BILCHIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good to see you, T.J.
HOLMES: This is remarkable. And these are the reports-
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BILCHIK: We are seeing Japanese stoicism on fill display.
HOLMES: Yes.
BILCHIK: And one of the best stories of this, just near the Fukushima plant, you have a truck arrive with supplies, water, people are desperate. And lines of people waiting for supplies. The officials say the supplies have run out. The water has run out. People quietly disperse.
HOLMES: Walk away. BILCHIK: There's no fighting. Look at what happened in Haiti or we look at Hurricane Katrina, and the anger and the frustration. We are seeing none of that. We are certainly seeing despair. We are certainly seeing anguish-but stoicism.
HOLMES: This can actually be explained, if you will, in their culture. This is not surprising.
BILCHIK: Look at the forefathers, Kamikaze pilots, Samurai warriors, people who will stop at nothing to achieve their goals. But also we have Buddhism, and we have the Shinto culture. We have a blend of all.
Now, Japanese Buddhism is known as Funeral Buddhism, because there are so many rituals surrounding funerals. There will be cremations. There is also a form of Japanese Buddhism known as Ameda, which means pure land. There's a belief that if we pray for our ancestors they will get to paradise. So, tremendous rituals, also in Judaism, in Islam, in Christianity, we focus on the cause of something. In the Eastern religions they focus much more on let us deal with what happened. Look at it positively. An attitude of resilience, as you said, of the cause doesn't matter. How are we dealing with the crisis.
HOLMES: That kind of explains what we are seeing here. But can you imagine? We could probably speculate this could help them get through this disaster. We are talking a disaster on three different fronts now. Can you imagine if there was chaos, if there was fighting in the streets over limited supplies. This could actually help them move along and get through this.
BILCHIK: Certainly there is this very conciliatory attitude toward each other. There hasn't even been price gouging. That would be seen as un-Japanese. So, as you say, the pain is there, the despair is there. Also, for a religion that likes to bury or cremate their dead, to not. For so many missing, that would be a problem. But what you are seeing is polite, conciliatory stoic people.
HOLMES: And one more thing, quickly, how does it play into the incredible respect for the elders that they have there.
BILCHIK: Tremendous respect for elders, for the elderly, unlike our society which often puts people away. There is a tremendous reverence and we know so many elderly have been affected. There's a reverence for the elderly and there is a huge reverence for the world to come, paradise, their spirituality.
In the 8:00 hour, we will be looking at the emperor of Japan and how he did something this week that never in the history of Japan-
HOLMES: Has been done.
BILCHIK: Has been done.
HOLMES: Nadia Bilchik good to see you for our "Morning Passport" once again. But that is something people may not realize and think about, this is playing a huge role and factor now. It is just that culture and how they are able to deal with disasters on top of disasters.
Nadia, thank you so much.
BILCHIK: Thank you.
HOLMES: Going to turn to another picture we want to show you. This is happening in Washington State. The earth opened up and threatening to swallow a whole neighborhood. We will explain this, coming up. We are a few minutes from the top of the hour on CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
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HOLMES: As we get close to the top of the hour, I'll give you a look at the stories we are following across country.
Would you believe this? Look at the picture. This started out all because of just a crack. That house you are seeing right there? Yes, it is literally sinking. It's leaning. See what's happening to this neighborhood in Everett, Washington. A crack appeared six weeks ago threatening about four homes. This is being blamed on recent heavy rains in the area.
Neighbors say one house is tilting at a 20-degree angle and could collapse at any moment.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's just amazing how fast it's going.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In the last few days, it's going very fast.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You just go to sleep at night and wonder if it's going to be here in the morning.
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HOLMES: Oh, that's not a good feeling.
Crews in Miami, Florida now, they have rescued seven people who got stuck on a youth roller coaster ride. One car didn't make it over a hump. Rolled back into the second. Firefighters used a ladder to rescue the stuck riders. One person had to be taken to the hospital. The ride is still closed right now, officials at the fair trying to figure out what exactly went wrong.
Also, a Japanese submarine returns to Pearl Harbor yesterday, after nearly six weeks of training exercises with the U.S. Navy. The sub was at sea during the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis in Japan. Only now, the crew -- the 80-member crew -- is starting to get the full extent of what happened in their home country. On board, they weren't allowed to look at video or pictures out of Japan. They weren't allowed to communicate with family members by phone, e-mail or Facebook.
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